Military chiefs face a black hole of up to £21billion in the armed forces’ hardware budget, a Whitehall spending watchdog warns today.

New fighter jets, warships, submarines and tank upgrades have all been ordered.

But the Ministry of Defence “simply does not have enough money to buy all the equipment it says it needs”, the Commons Public Accounts Commons reveals.

In a damning report published today, MPs say: “A significant affordability gap has again opened up, with forecast costs at least £4.9billion - and potentially as much as £20.8billion - more than the £179.7billion budget.”

And Tory Ministers are failing to come clean about the gulf, the study claims.

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“The Department is reluctant to present openly an assessment of the affordability gap and has failed to report transparently to Parliament and the public about the financial risks it faces,” it warns.

The 22-page report raises particular fears over the Dreadnought nuclear submarine fleet, which has a £41billion budget, and the F-35 Lightning II warplanes to fly from the Royal Navy’s new aircraft carriers.

“The Department says that a recent review indicates that costs for the Dreadnought submarine need to be brought forward, which will further increase short term pressures in the (Defence Equipment) Plan,” it says.

“In addition, the costs of the warhead programme have also increased.

“Witnesses said their biggest worry is the costing of the nuclear programme.

“This is a long-term programme which can experience big cost changes throughout its life cycle.”

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During the committee’s inquiry, officials were unable to say how much the F-35 fighter jets would cost.

“There is a wider transparency gap, highlighted particularly by the lack of cost information available on F-35 Lightning fighter aircraft,” says the report.

“The Department should write back in three months committing to the specific improvements it will make in providing information to Parliament, including how it will provide regular and informative updates on the cost and progress of the F-35s.”

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Committee chairwoman Meg Hillier said: “The MoD’s national security responsibilities give it a unique and critical place in the public sector but that is no excuse for a lack of rigour in its financial affairs.

“It is concerning that the Department could find itself more than £20billion short of the funding required to buy the equipment it says it needs.

“The MoD’s inability to better quantify that affordability gap has consequences not just for its confirmed spending plans, but also its ability to prepare for serious challenges in national defence.”